JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information is forging international partnerships to address child abuse across the island.

 

Speaking at the launch of Child Month, which is observed annually in May, Minister of State in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, said in an effort to keep our children safe, Jamaica has been designated a ‘Pathfinder Country’, which is a ‘Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children.’

 

He explained that the United Nations (UN) has decided to bring together the global community to focus squarely on the issue of violence against our children.

 

“This is not just a Jamaica problem, but, as Jamaicans, we have put up our hands and we have said let us lead the way, and, as such, we have been designated a Pathfinder Country,” the State Minister said.

 

The annual Child Month activities were launched on April 6 at the GraceKennedy Offices, 73 Harbour Street, Kingston, under the theme‘Take Action! Break the Chain of Abuse against Children’.

 

As part of Agenda 2030, the world’s governments have set ambitious targets to end violence by 2030, in order to deliver the vision of a world where all children grow up free from violence and exploitation.

 

The State Minister also disclosed that in an effort to strengthen the Ananda Alert System, through the Office of the Children’s Registry (OCR) a partnership will be forged with Facebook.

 

On May 1, the start of Child Month, the initiative will be launched.

 

According to Mr. Green, when an Ananda Alert is issued for certain categories of children that go missing, it will be shared with all Jamaica Facebook users.

 

Meanwhile, Registrar at the OCR, Greig Smith, said the entity is committed to ensuring that the nation’s children are safe.

 

“A commitment to ending violence against children must be enshrined in our most basic tenets of governance,” Mr. Smith said, noting that there must be collective support.

 

“This requires a concerted effort from every Jamaican. The OCR, the Child Development Agency (CDA), the Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA), the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA) and the Government cannot do it alone,” he said.

 

For her part, Chair of the National Child Month Committee (NCMC), Dr. Pauline Mullings, called on every adult to take decisive action to break the chain on child labour, human trafficking, neglect, domestic violence, emotional abuse and physical abuse.

 

Activities for Child Month will begin with a national church service at the Fellowship Tabernacle, 2 Fairfeild Ave, Kingston, on Sunday, May 7.

 

On Friday, May 19, National Children’s Day, members of the NCMC, along with other stakeholders, will gather in the Half-Way Tree Transport Centre and St. William Grant Park, downtown Kingston, at 6:00 a.m. to bring cheer and hand out tokens to children on their way to school.

 

A National Day of Prayer will be observed on Wednesday, May 31 at the Bethel Baptist Church in Half-Way Tree from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

 

Sponsors for Child Month are GraceKennedy Limited, the National Baking Company Foundation, General Accident Insurance Company Jamaica Limited and Kingston Bookshop Limited.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (left), converses with Patron of Child Month, Hon. Douglas Orane, at the launch of Child Month 2017 on April 6, at GraceKennedy Headquarters, downtown Kingston.

JIS: Jamaica’s first cashless system for schools was officially launched yesterday (April 10) during a function at St. George’s College, North Street, downtown Kingston.

 

The system, to be administered by Alliance Payment Services, will shape the way in which payments are made at schools and positively impact safety policies for students and teachers.

 

In her remarks, Manager, Sales and Marketing at Alliance Payment Services, Raquel Reid, said the cashless system initiative is a programme aimed at creating a more secure and efficient environment by removing cash transactions from school campuses and providing administrators with real-time financial reports.

 

“The initiative will see the issuance of an ePay card to all students, who will use the card to make purchases on campus. This will eliminate the need for cash by students and should, therefore, reduce incidents of theft and the associated cases of violence,” Ms. Reid said.

 

She noted that under the initiative, parents may add funds to their child’s account, while at the same time facilitating online bill payment by them.

 

To date, the programme has completed a comprehensive and successful pilot at both Campion College and Immaculate Conception High School.

 

Improvements were made to the programme based on feedback and consultation with students, parents and school administrators.

 

The cashless system will be expanded to include Calabar High School and St. George’s College. Aspects of the programme will also facilitate electronic transactions at Sts. Peter and Paul Preparatory and St. Andrew Preparatory.

 

“With this launch, the cashless programme is now available for implementation in all schools and colleges across Jamaica. We are pleased that the cashless system features great partnership with Victoria Mutual Building Society and Wysinco Foods,” Ms. Reid said.

 

For her part, Principal of Campion College, Ms. Grace Baston, voiced her support for the initiative, noting that the ePay card is used to allow students to purchase meals at the canteen.

 

“Quite appropriately, we also integrate our Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) and welfare students into the programme, so that they too have cards to purchase meals. So, you cannot, at Campion, tell the difference between a PATH student transaction and any other transaction,” Ms. Baston said.

 

Meanwhile, President of the National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica (NPTAJ), Everton Hannam, also endorsed the initiative.

 

“The NPTAJ is committed to working with our schools, parents and administrators to ensure that we cultivate the safest possible environment for our students. In the face of this, the NPTAJ believes that the cashless school initiative, if rolled out universally and becomes ubiquitous, will provide a platform of safety, prevent theft, campus bullying and the violence associated with these events,” Mr. Hannam said.

 

The launch of the cashless school initiative at St. George’s College, follows the successful implementation of the tertiary leg of the programme at The Mico University College in 2016.

 

CAPTION: Chief Executive Officer, Building Society Operations at Victoria Mutual Building Society, Peter Reid (right), along with student at St. George’s College, Britney Powell, demonstrate the use of the ePay card at the launch of the Schools Cashless Initiative, held at St. George’s College, yesterday (April 10). Others (from left) are Manager, Sales and Marketing at Alliance Payment Services Limited, Raquel Reid; and Head, Customer Service, Alliance Payment Services Limited, Zana Ramsay.

JIS: The Child Development Agency (CDA) today (April 7) received a Mobile Mental Health Unit, ‘Smile Mobile’, from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

 

It has been provided under the Transitional Living Programme for Children in State Care (TLP-CSC) Project.

 

Retrofitted with two counselling areas, Wi-Fi service, air conditioning, a refrigerator, sink and cabinets, the mobile health unit will play a significant role in strengthening the capacity of the CDA to respond to the needs of youth who have been traumatised by various acts of violence and abuse.

 

The handover ceremony was held at the Alpha Institute in Kingston. Also presented to the CDA were two 15-seater buses, which will meet the transportation needs of children in State care in the southern and western regions of the island.

 

The Mobile Mental Health Unit, along with one of the buses, will serve the parishes of Clarendon, St. Elizabeth and Manchester in the southern region, while the second bus will serve the parishes of Trelawny, St. James, Westmoreland and Hanover in the west.

 

Addressing the ceremony, Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, said the handover of the units is timely, as it coincides with the upcoming World Mental Health Day, observed annually on October 10 to raise awareness of the debilitating effects of mental illness.

 

“This initiative is very important, particularly for our vulnerable groups that really need this kind of care,” he said.

 

He also encouraged persons who struggle with this ailment to seek professional help.

 

Meanwhile, Mission Director for the USAID in Jamaica, Maura Barry Boyle, commended the CDA for their work in treating with the psychological trauma among youth in State care.

 

She reiterated the USAID’s commitment to provide support for the children impacted by the project.

 

“Youth transitioning out of State care must be prepared for independent living and, in doing so, be empowered to achieve their full potential and make meaningful contributions to the wider society,” the USAID Director said.

 

Chief Executive Officer of the CDA, Rosalee Gage-Grey, said the project arose out of the need to mobilise services to provide rapid and consistent psychological interventions to counteract the effect of trauma on the children.

 

“To effectively treat a child that has been traumatised takes many hours of intervention, and early in the life of the CDA, we saw the need for a unit that would do just that. This intervention has had a significant impact on the lives of our children,” she said.

 

The TLP-CSC is a six-year project that aims to equip youth in State care with life and vocational skills training, mentoring and providing safe and appropriate transitional living facilities for this group.

 

The donation is part of the TLP-CSC project, which is being implemented by the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus in partnership with the CDA. It is funded by the USAID.

 

CAPTION: Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid (right) and Mission Director for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Jamaica, Maura Barry Boyle (second right) in discussion at the handover of a Mobile Mental Health Unit, ‘Smile Mobile,’ to the Child Development Agency (CDA), in Kingston, on April 7. The unit is to assist in strengthening the capacity of the CDA to provide psychological assessment and treatment of youth who have been traumatised by various acts of violence and abuse.

JIS: Parents are being encouraged to participate in the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission’s (JADCO) public education programme, aimed at promoting fair play and integrity in sport.

 

This urging comes from Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, who emphasised that “without the support of the parents, there can be no real impact made by the programme”.

 

Her remarks were made in a message delivered by JADCO Chairman, Alexander Williams, during the agency’s anti-doping parents education workshop at the Karl Hendrickson Auditorium, Jamaica College, St. Andrew, on Thursday, April 6, under the theme ‘Preventing Doping: Parents Reach One, Teach One’.

 

Ms Grange noted that the number of Jamaican students participating in various organised sporting events locally, regionally and globally has increased to well over 3,000.

 

Additionally, she said there were more than 40 registered sporting associations and disciplines, within and outside the school system, in which the youngsters participate.

 

This, the Minister contended, augured well for their holistic development, as, apart from the health benefits, the youngsters were afforded opportunities to secure scholarships as well as travel overseas and gain exposure to other cultures while learning important life skills.

 

Ms Grange said, however, that there was also the possibility of misplaced emphasis arising which placed focus on the “wrong things, like winning at all cost”.

 

“When athletes are exposed to the proper environment, whereby they can expend the necessary efforts and make good choices, you would be hard-pressed to find anything else that gives them the opportunity for holistic benefits than participating in competitive sports,” she added.

 

 Against this background, Ms Grange lauded the support provided by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in partnering with JADCO to host the workshops.

 

“Sincere gratitude must be expressed to UNESCO for its long-standing partnership with Jamaica, and specifically JADCO in its public education campaign (focused on) promoting fair play and integrity in sport,” she added.

 

The workshop, which was staged in partnership with the National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica, was geared towards sensitising parents and guardians of junior athletes about the anti-doping regulations.

 

Thursday’s staging was the first in a series of five scheduled to be held over the forthcoming weeks.

 

CAPTION: Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) Chairman, Alexander Williams (2nd right), converses with parent, Maxine Taylor (2nd left), during Thursday’s (April 6) launch of the JADCO/National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica Anti-Doping parents education workshop at the Karl Hendrickson Auditorium, Jamaica College, St. Andrew. Others from left are fellow parent, Tracey-ann Graham Alonso and JADCO Executive Director, Carey Brown.

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information will be partnering with social media giant, Facebook, to broadcast Ananda Alerts.

 

In his contribution to the 2017/18 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on April 5, State Minister in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green noted that a Facebook team will be visiting Jamaica in May for the official launch of the partnership.

 

“This partnership will enable the broadcast of Ananda Alerts on the pages of all Facebook users in Jamaica, which will ensure that we have a larger pool searching for our children when they go missing,” he said.

 

Meanwhile, Mr. Green informed that the backlog of sexual-offence cases at the Child Development Agency (CDA) has been cleared.

 

As it relates to the planned merger of the CDA and the Office of the Children’s Registry (OCR), he noted that the move aims to “remove the bureaucracy from child protection”.

 

“The CDA and OCR merger is not a cost-saving measure. The focus will be on efficiency, roles and effectiveness. The motivating factor is to have a child-protection sector which appropriately responds to the needs of our children,” he pointed out.

 

He added that in the new dispensation, the Registry functions will be sufficiently protected to guarantee the necessary legal safeguards in child-abuse cases.

 

CAPTION: In this file photo, State Minister for Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green (right), reflects on the life of Ananda Dean, who died tragically in 2008, with her mother, Nardia Campbell. 

JIS: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), will be providing two new 15-seater minivans to meet the transportation needs of children in State care in the southern and western regions of the island.

 

State Minister in the Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, made the announcement during his contribution to the 2017/18 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, April 5.

 

Mr. Green said the buses, which are being provided by the USAID under the Transitional Living Programme for Children in State Care Project, will transport the children to school, court and for medical appointments.

 

The programme is being implemented by the Child Development Agency (CDA) and the Caribbean Child Development Centre (CCDC) of the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus.

 

Mr. Green said the Ministry will also be expanding the Smile Mobile programme with the acquisition of a 35-seater bus to facilitate psychological assessments of children.

 

The retrofitted unit will be staffed by two clinical psychologists as well as one social worker and a driver. This brings the number of Smile Mobile units to two.

 

“It has borne significant fruit, but the reality is that we only had one. Come Friday (April 7), we will be unveiling another Smile Mobile to go into the western region,” he informed.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green.

The Government’s Ananda Alert secretariat has partnered with international social-media company Facebook to share broadcasts of missing children on the pages of Jamaican users, state minister in the youth ministry, Floyd Green, announced on Wednesday during his contribution to the 2017-2018 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

 

“We are taking the Ananda Alert system to a new level,” he said, noting that a team from the United States-based Facebook organisation will visit Jamaica next month for the official launch of the partnership.

 

He also said a study of the alert system will be done, pointing out that a preliminary one (Child Disappearances in Jamaica: A Situational Analysis of the Ananda Alert System) was conducted last year.

 

DISAPPEARANCE FACTORS

 

“The study assessed the various factors accounting for child disappearances in Jamaica, identified service gaps in the Ananda Alert System and posited recommendations for improving effectiveness in the system,” said the St Elizabeth South Western member of parliament.

 

The scope of the study, Green said, is being widened, but noted that a key finding so far is that “maltreatment is one of the main reasons for which children voluntarily go missing”.

 

The Ananda Alert system is named after Ananda Dean, the 11-year-old Kingston schoolgirl who was kidnapped and later murdered in 2008 in a case that angered the nation.

 

It replaced the Red Alert and is the nationwide alert system designed to ensure speedy recovery of children.

 

Children’s Registrar Greig Smith reported in February that almost 2,000 children were reported missing between 2015 and last year.

 

CAPTION: Floyd Green, Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information 

JIS: State Minister in the Education, Youth and Information Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, says the Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence will return this year.

 

Making the announcement during his Sectoral Debate presentation on April 5 in the House of Representatives, Mr. Green said young people will be selected from a list of categories.

 

These include Academics, Youth in Service, Arts in Culture, International Achievement, Leadership and Journalism, among other areas.

 

“We are adding two new areas, which are Science and Technology and Environment and Health,” he noted.

 

In response to the announcement, member of the Jamaica Youth Advisory Council and Attorney-at-Law, Michelle Thomas, said it is remarkable that the Government is celebrating young people who have been doing outstanding work in their communities and in various capacities.

 

“Young people should be celebrated and empowered by the Government. This award would seek to empower them to be torch bearers of good citizenry,” she said.

 

The Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence serves to recognise youth who have excelled and contributed to national development.

 

It also seeks to provide a platform for young people to showcase their achievements in numerous fields.

 

Since the inception of the Prime Minister’s National Youth Awards for Excellence in 1998, 165 awards have been conferred.

 

Meanwhile, the State Minister noted that many youth leaders who are making significant contributions never rise to national prominence, despite working tirelessly in their communities.

 

In that regard, he said 55 young people “who have a solid record of community service” will be awarded later this year.

 

CAPTION: Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green. (FILE)

JIS: State Minister in the Education, Youth and Information Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green, has called on Members of Parliament (MPs) to help early-childhood institutions (ECIs) in their constituencies to become certified.

 

Making his contribution to the 2017/18 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on April 5, Mr. Green said the MPs should channel some of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) to help in this regard.

 

Mr. Green further noted that his Ministry is seeking to form partnerships with non-governmental organisations (NGOs), such as the Rotaract and Kiwanis clubs and other private partners, “to come on board on this drive to certification”.

 

“Already, the Digicel Foundation has pledged $15 million to help five ECIs reach certification in the parishes of St. Elizabeth, Manchester, St. Catherine, Westmoreland and Hanover,” he said.

 

The State Minister also cited the contribution of the One Jamaica Foundation to the St. Margaret’s Bay Basic School in Portland, adding that the Breds Foundation and Crayons Count are also working to have ECIs in the Greater Treasure Beach area certified.

 

“National Bakery, through their Little Leaders Programme, has (also) committed $70 million towards early-childhood education,” he said

 

“We are far advanced in discussions with Restaurants of Jamaica, owners and operators of Pizza Hut and KFC, with the hope they will provide financing to ensure that 35 ECIs are provided with a hot and nutritious meal,” the State Minister said.

 

The Early Childhood Commission (ECC) is seeking to certify approximately 300 basic schools by 2019.

 

One hundred institutions, with an enrolment of approximately 5,000 children, are being targeted under the initial certification phase, which commenced last September and is scheduled for completion in August 2017.

 

There are approximately 2,700 early-childhood institutions in operation across the island.

 

CAPTION: State Minister in the Education, Youth and Information Ministry, Hon. Floyd Green (third left), interacts with (from left): Dammi Hannigan, Dominique Parkes and Drew Stewart of the St. Margaret’s Basic School in Portland on January 26. Occasion was a ceremony organised by the Early Childhood Commission (ECC) to announce the certification of the school.